Associate (AE) - Corporate Affairs

At The Weber Shandwick Collective, you are welcomed, valued and empowered to grow. We create cultural value and help brands navigate the ever-changing age of earned: an age where consumers actively say no to advertising; an age where everyone is an influencer that can make or break your brand; an age where content can be turned into commercial opportunity. Our talented team builds brands by finding connection points in the real world. We energise the right mix of talent, using the right platforms and latest technology to choreograph stories that make a real and meaningful impact for some of the world’s leading brands and businesses.

We earn affection, attention, affinity and purchase by delivering value to people around the world, with deep specialisms across food & drink, travel & tourism, consumer tech, consumer health, automotive, sports sponsorship, entertainment & lifestyle and energy.

We are known for:

• Developing data driven insights and strategies to drive measurable impact
• Creating impactful campaigns that tap into culture
• Creating channel and platform agnostic campaigns that grow organically
• Delivering integrated campaigns that are earned-first but deliver for paid and owned

Weber Shandwick is looking for a talented Associate who wants to be part of the Corporate Enterprise practice in our London office. The practice is made up of a smart, dedicated and fun team with expertise spanning B2B, Corporate, Public Affairs, Crisis/Issues, Social Impact/ESG and Technology. This role will have a distinct focus on building corporate reputation for enterprise and start-up tech businesses. The ideal candidate will be curious, ambitious, proactive and friendly – with a forward-looking view on topics including the changing media landscape and AI implementation.

The role offers a portfolio of well-known global brands, as well as work on integrated campaigns involving earned media, strategy, creative, analytics and digital specialists. You’ll be instrumental in supporting account teams managing the day-to-day running of accounts, pitching to the media and securing coverage, research, and reporting on campaigns.

The successful candidate will demonstrate the following key attributes:

CLIENT AND WORK

• Serve as key team member to support a range of complex, high-profile corporate reputation situations (i.e. fundraising, corporate narrative development, media engagement, executive visibility)
• Support development of external communications materials including press releases, bylines, media strategies, reactive media statements, speechwriting, social media posts talking points, FAQs, and other deliverables as needed;
• Support monitoring of proactive opportunities and triaging of client issues
• Conduct pressing research on a wide range of issues, review and prepare executive summaries and/or analyses detailing clear and concise findings, distill highly complex and large amounts of information into concise summaries and insights; begin to propose strategic and actionable recommendations
• Provide input during development of projects based on insights and knowledge of client preferences
• Prepare for and participate in client meetings, including accurately capturing notes, agenda action items, call recaps, updating trackers, timelines, status documents and reporting on coverage KPIs

SELF LEADERSHIP AND TEAM EFFECTIVENESS

• Serve as role model to team members, producing high quality work and continually updating manager on activity progress
• Actively seek to build own knowledge, contribute to inclusive team culture and consistently display behaviours that support integration

GROWTH AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT

• Leverage understanding of client’s business to share ideas to help grow the account organically
• Participate in meetings to support new business development/organic business growth opportunities as directed, including capturing notes, recaps, research, updating trackers and timelines (proactive/reactive pitches)
• Attuned to culturally relevant insights and happenings for clients and begin to bring forward these insights to inform growth activity

BUSINESS ACUMEN

• Develop and demonstrate a solutions-oriented mentality, including the pursuit of multiple approaches when faced with a challenge
• Develop a relationship mindset and seek opportunities to get to know peers within and outside of department to imagine how to work together to deliver the best possible work
• Develop a strong understanding of the client’s business and target audience; continue to maintain a keen interest in current industry trends
• Support a healthy account through timely and accurate tracking of time

SUBJECT MATTER EXPERTISE

• Existing knowledge of, or curiosity to learn about, emerging technologies and the AI start-up landscape. This doesn’t require technical knowledge, but an understanding of the landscape and prevailing narratives
• Have excellent critical thinking skills, able to interrogate and interpret briefs and translate the ask into impactful outputs

To be considered for this role, you must have around one year of demonstrable experience in a PR role, with agency experience preferred.

Ideal Experience Required:

• Proficiency in both media relations and the delivery of an exceptional client experience
• An initial but growing set of journalist contacts with Corporate, B2B and technology vertical sector beats, or the ability to forge such relationships
• Experience using standard PR tools (e.g. ResponseSource, Qwoted, Roxhill)
• Be an excellent communicator and possess exceptional writing skills, particularly the ability to digest complex information and turn it into compelling, understandable written copy
• A proactive approach to identifying opportunities for the client, practice and team
• Experience interacting with clients on a day-to-day basis
• A proven ability to manage projects, manage your time and consistently meet deadlines
• Attentive to detail and quality
• Fluency in Microsoft programs and digital/social media platforms, tools and solutions

Join us and help make an impact. Together, we'll set the bar, cheer each other on and multiply your potential. At Weber Shandwick we are proud to be a Disability Confident Employer. We are committed to equality of opportunity for all staff and applications from individuals are encouraged regardless of age, disability, sex, gender reassignment, sexual orientation, pregnancy and maternity, race, religion or belief and marriage and civil partnerships.